


Cubs, Rabbits and Wolves, Oh My!

by ddagent



Series: The Pack Series [2]
Category: Operation: Endgame (2010), Ravenous (1999)
Genre: Adultery, Bloodplay, Cannibalism, Children, Explicit Sexual Content, F/F, F/M, Family, Married Couple, Torture
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-09-07
Updated: 2012-09-07
Packaged: 2017-11-13 18:23:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/506383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ddagent/pseuds/ddagent
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They were the perfect family: the cannibal, the psychopath and the five year old with the rabbit fixation. But the nanny could provide their undoing. Can Hiero and Francis fight for their family? Or will their relationship crash and burn?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cubs, Rabbits and Wolves, Oh My!

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Ravenous, Operation Endgame or any of their characters, or their settings.
> 
> My new Hiero/Ives story, yay! I am still really surprised by the reaction to this ship, and I hope you really, really enjoy this new addition to the pack series. Have fun!

_Part One_

 

Hiero Johnson-Ives had always dreamed about being a mother. At five she had carried around a little baby doll called Tilly. She had dressed her every morning and put her to bed every night and altogether took better care of Tilly at five years old than her parents had taken care of _her_. When her mother had dowsed her with holy water and when her father whipped the back of her legs, Hiero had promised that she when she became a mother; she would be the best one in the world.

 

But while Hiero had always longed to be a mother, another urge came out in her. After a stray match left her without a home _or_ family but produced a rush of which she had never felt, Hiero realised she liked to kill. When a body or three was picked up along the highways of the South, the CIA had recruited her so her illegal activities could find a worthier place than behind bars.

 

Whilst she had satisfied her love of killing by doing it professionally, Hiero had found it difficult to meet men who wanted to carry on a relationship with her. All the men she seemed to meet were deadbeats that she would end up strangling. The really _good_ guys she met dated her for a while but ended up dumping her in the end. They tried to play it off that they weren't ready for commitment, or that they had just got out of a previous relationship and weren't ready for anything else. But when they still asked for a blow job in the bathroom stall, Hiero realised that they just saw her as white trash.  

 

She had given up her hope of one day finding a nice guy and having a family and after things had come to a...sticky end at work, she had found herself wanting a fresh start. Her bus to Los Angeles had been chance; the first bus out of Washington DC that would take her far, far away from her old life. As soon as she had stepped off that bus she had caught sight of a man who looked completely out of place in the dingy retreat of the desperate. She hadn't realised, smiling at the handsome man, that he was what she had been waiting for her entire life.

 

Hiero stretched out a hand on her bed, reaching out for the love of her life, her husband, her _Francis_. When she didn't feel his body beside her, she blearily opened her eyes. He wasn't there. No wiry Wendigo with a thick head of hair and well trimmed beard. No warm brown eyes that promised her all the love she had ever wanted. If it wasn't for the little thing curled up beside her, Hiero would almost consider him a fantasy.

 

A little further along from Hiero's outstretched hand was a little ball of cotton pyjamas and curls wrapped around a stuffed rabbit. Her hair was the richest brown like her father, and she had the cutest little nose. She enjoyed colouring and cuddly toys and playing in Fort Johnson, her tree house in the back garden. She looked just like her daddy except for the eyes, which were like a clear summer day.

 

They were currently screwed shut at the moment, and Hiero wanted nothing more than to see them open.  Softly, she ran a hand over the little cub's head and Hiero watched as her daughter stirred. Neither she nor Francis had expected to love her as much as they did - during Hiero's pregnancy both of them had worried that they would be incapable of loving their little cub. But when she had been born, both of them had fallen in love.

 

"Morning Isabelle."

 

She beamed. Morning Mommy."

 

The little cub scrambled over the bed sheets to cuddle against her mother. Hiero wrapped her arms around the little one, pressing her close. She nuzzled the top of Isabelle's head, smiling as her daughter giggled. "Do you know where Daddy is, honey?"

 

"He's downstairs with _Caitlin_ ," Isabelle explained, making a face at the name of her nanny. The little one wasn't fond of her, and to be frank neither was Hiero. The nineteen year old UCLA student had excellent references and loved working with kids. She had come off well at her interview and even Isabelle had liked her then. With Hiero working a lot and Francis often taking trips to where he had rampaged across California, they had needed a nanny and Caitlin had been a godsend.

 

It wasn't until they were in their third month of having Caitlin in the family that Hiero noticed that something was wrong. Isabelle had pointed out to her on several occasions where Caitlin had touched Francis' elbow, or smiled at him on just the wrong side of polite. The shorts had grown shorter; the shirts had turned into vests. Cuddly toys had started appearing in Isabelle's room, stuffed down the side of her bed while she slept. Yet every morning when Hiero went to check on her little cub, the soft toy had been ripped apart. Caitlin was slowly trying to replace mommy, and Isabelle wouldn't let her.

 

Francis, however, had no such problems. All he saw was an intelligent, sweet girl who got on great with his daughter. If he noticed the skimpy shorts or low cleavage, he didn't say anything. He just joked and smiled and occasionally winked at her. Hiero didn't care for it. She didn't like him encouraging her, didn't like the idea of him falling into her trap. The fact that their sex life had dwindled worried her more than it should - she tried to chalk it up to a five year old running around with a rabbit and not the nanny making bedroom eyes at her husband.

 

Deciding to go down and make sure the nanny wasn't riding her husband on the kitchen table, Hiero slid off the bed and picked up their daughter in her arms. They could both hear Francis laughing with Caitlin, and the simple sound made Isabelle's grip tighten. The little cub was very protective of her Daddy. A woman from his publishers had kissed him on the cheek once and Isabelle had screamed bloody murder to force the woman away from Francis. After being yanked into her mother's arms, Isabelle had buried her head into her shoulder, just like she did now. Their cub liked their pack small, and did not care for intruders. Mother and daughter continued their walk to the kitchen, Hiero careful to miss out her husband's trick floorboard in the hall as they did so.

 

The kitchen itself was glass and chrome, similar to the rest of the house. Her husband was by the stove, frying up bacon. He only had his dressing gown on, no shirt. Caitlin was standing next to him, holding a mug of coffee. Although Caitlin was nearly two hundred years her husband's junior, the two were carrying on like old friends. Hiero may be pretty [ _beautiful_ according to her husband] and her work and lifestyle as a Wendigo made sure her body still looked damned good, but she would never be nineteen again.

 

"Morning everyone," Hiero greeted as she came into the room with Isabelle on her hip. Making sure Caitlin was watching; Hiero forced her mouth on her husband's, claiming him with tongue and teeth. Perhaps a little desperate, but it made her feel better. After leaving her husband breathless, she turned to the nanny. "How are you doing, Caitlin?"

 

The nanny put on a smile, trying to act like she hadn't been three jokes away from touching Francis' chest. "Absolutely fine, thank you Missus Ives. Francis here was just telling me about his latest book! I do love the Colonel; he's such a compelling character."

 

"Oh he really is. You know, in his first draft, the Colonel was going to die!" Hiero managed to smile. "It still might happen."

 

Francis coughed from his position by the stove, and Hiero turned back around to place Isabelle onto one of the breakfast chairs. She poured her daughter a bowl of fruit loops for breakfast. The bacon sizzling on the grill was anything but pig, and when Isabelle had moved onto solid food they had made a strong decision to wait until Isabelle was eighteen to share their Wendigo lifestyle with her. Hiero made sure Isabelle had a glass of orange juice and milk in her cereal before she brought out the plates for breakfast.

 

"Shall I lay out three?" Hiero suggested, putting on another fake smile for her husband and Caitlin.

 

Caitlin was about to say something when Francis intervened. He did not look happy. "I don't think we've got enough bacon, sadly. Isabelle, eat up and then Caitlin can get you dressed for the day."

 

Francis and Caitlin exchanged polite smiles. The overprotective cub frowned as she ate her cereal. After two mouthfuls she dug her spoon into the bowl and gave some to her cuddly rabbit. Hiero saw and smiled, but Caitlin didn't see it that way. "Oh honey, don't feed your rabbit Fruit Loops!" She immediately took the spoon from Isabelle's grip and grabbed the rabbit to wash it under the sink.

 

Isabelle growled under her breath, not enjoying her rabbit being taken from her, or having her spoon removed from her grip. Shoving the bowl away from her, she jumped off her chair and walked over to where Caitlin was. She yanked her rabbit from the nanny's grip and plodded off to her bedroom with a "Not hungry," thrown over her shoulder.

 

Caitlin, the little tart of a nanny, immediately ran after the little cub. It would be hard to play mommy if the child hated you, after all.  Hiero just sat at the table, looking at her nails. She would need a manicure. Possibly best to do it after her appointment later on that day. The sound of a plate smashing brought her out of her daydream. She turned to see her husband by the stove looking furious. Even wearing a dark blue bathrobe with no shirt, he was an intimidating presence.

 

"What the hell were you _thinking,_ Hiero?" Francis hissed. "You know what this bacon is!"

 

"I do, I was there when we killed him," Hiero shot back. "Come on, one little slice of human flesh isn't going to hurt her." She couldn't see why he was getting so upset about it. They had served human meat to their dinner guests before, to the ones they didn't particularly like. But this was Caitlin, not some PTA member who kept looking down Hiero's shirt. "Unless you don't want to contaminate little miss pom pom."

 

Her husband dragged a hand through his hair, exasperated. It was too early to be having this conversation. "What the hell are you talking about, Hiero?"

 

This wasn't the first time she had expressed dislike over Caitlin, and it wasn't the first time her husband had defended her, saying she was wonderful with Isabelle. They repeated this argument at least once a week. "Isn't it the typical cliché? The big bad brooding monster falls for the sweet, innocent girl. Untouched by darkness, pure of heart. A little slutty with the cleavage."

 

"Can we not have this conversation this morning? I need to finish a chapter; Isabelle needs to get off to school. I don’t want to debate with you about having Caitlin in our home." Francis went back to the bacon, turning it over.

 

Deciding he was right, Hiero realised she needed some fresh air. Standing up from the table, she walked over to the stove and kissed her husband on the cheek. He smiled faintly at her. She adjusted his bathrobe over his chest before giving him another chaste kiss. "I'm sorry, Francis. Must suck sometimes to realise you're married to a broken butterfly." 

 

Before she could move away, Francis grabbed her wrist. He pressed a lingering kiss to the inside before moving slowly up her arm, pulling her to him. They were flush against each other, the sheer fabric of her negligee pressed up against his bare chest. Hiero opened his robe so she could hold him, touch him. Their mouths were inches from each other, both of them breathing heavily. They hadn't been this close in some time.

 

"Hiero, I'm no cliché creature of the night." He forced her harder against him, cool silk against hot flesh. His erection pressed against her belly, and Hiero felt her legs go weak. Isabelle and Caitlin were upstairs, they could do this. He could take her against the kitchen counter, claim his mate. Make any worries disappear with a quick thrust. "I'm not a vampire, not a werewolf, not a fucking fairy with a gym membership. Young flesh doesn't make me horny, it makes me hungry. With you, Hiero, I don't want to eat you up. I want to eat you out."

 

Francis' teeth made contact with her neck, biting down to leave marks on her skin. Just as his hands made it under her negligee to stroke her thighs, a cuddly gorilla was thrown down the stairs, followed by the slamming of a door. Another day in the Johnson-Ives household.

 

"I should see to that," Hiero said, kissing her husband on the cheek and leaving him alone to make breakfast. Somehow she wasn't hungry for bacon sandwiches any more.

 

Picking up the gorilla on the steps, Hiero went upstairs to her little cub. With every step she regretted not letting herself have her husband against the kitchen work tops. She missed him.

 

Standing at the top of the stairs was the nanny herself. She looked a little sheepish, a little like mutton dressed as lamb. Caitlin eagerly took the gorilla when Hiero handed it over. "I tried to get Isabelle into that pretty little pinafore she looks so good in. She wasn't impressed."

 

Hiero smirked. "It's Friday, Caitlin. It's dungaree day."

 

The nanny nodded, taking on the piece of knowledge. She squeezed the gorilla hard, as if creating a barrier between herself and the matriarch of the household. "I just thought that a change may do her good."

 

That was unacceptable to Hiero. She was the nanny. She took Isabelle to school, she picked her up, she tidied her room and cooked her dinner. She was not her mother. _Hiero_ was. "Isabelle likes routine. Monday is jeans, Tuesday is dresses. Wednesday is those pretty trousers with the flowers up the side, Thursday is shorts and Friday is dungarees. There are four pairs in her bottom drawer. I'd get the ones with the rabbits I embroidered on the front. Those are her favourite."

 

The final word was hers, and Hiero went along to the master bedroom to get dressed herself. She wished she could put Isabelle in her dungarees, talk to Archie the rabbit as they got ready. But she had a client at midday and she had to look _perfect._ It wasn't like she worked in an office where a badly coordinated skirt would be mindless gossip. If she got the ensemble wrong then the client would likely end up getting away.  

 

Today's client was a young woman determined to be a black widow. Young and pretty, she had gone through wife number three last month. Wife number _two_ 's ex, who was still desperately in love with her at the time of her death, had called Hiero to set up the hit. A week's surveillance and research meant Hiero knew _exactly_ what the black widow liked - blonde women, the sluttier the better. A short skirt, a black plunge bra under a white blouse. She would be counting the cash by the end of the day and Isabelle would be getting the rabbit that she so desperately wanted by the end of the month. They just had to talk Daddy into it first.

 

She could only imagine her little girl's face when she cuddled up to her first pet. She adored watching the little milestones of her daughter's life.  Although it had taken her a while, she had finally got the life she had always wanted.

 

X

 

All through her shower and finding the right ensemble, Hiero hadn't heard a peep from Isabelle's room. It was only as she was putting on her lipstick that a scream disturbed the peace. Rushing to the doorway, Hiero saw Caitlin run across the hallway to the nearest bathroom. The nanny was hyperventilating, but Hiero didn't care about her. She shot straight for her little cub's room, a million worries going through her mind.

 

Isabelle's bedroom was bright pink, with a huge four poster bed and a gazillion stuffed animals, mostly rabbits and bears. When Hiero got to the door, her daughter was sitting in the middle, holding onto her rabbit and wearing a half fastened pair of dungarees. There was blood on her daughter's lip.

 

"Honey, are you okay?"

 

Isabelle looked like she was about to burst into tears and she held out her arms for her mother to pick her up. Hiero immediately went to her and wrapped herself around her cub. She wiped the blood off her daughter's lips and checked her teeth, making sure none of them were cracked. She didn't want to have to take Isabelle to the dentist.

 

"Baby, what happened?" Hiero asked, bouncing Isabelle in her arms. Her daughter looked like she was about to cry. She had never seen anything that broke her heart more.

 

"I tried to wipe some dirt off of her face and she went for me," Caitlin explained as she came back into the bedroom, a fresh bandage around her hand. She didn't look too happy, but she knew better than to complain. After all it was _she_ who wanted to play mother to the cub that was learning how to use her fangs. "I'm sorry if I scared you sweetheart."

 

Isabelle buried her nose in her mother's shoulder, not wanting to talk to the nanny. The words "bite you again," were muffled against Hiero's shoulder. She held her cub close, trying not to giggle at Caitlin's misfortune."Caitlin, honey, I know you were planning to take Isabelle to school but as you're looking after her tonight, how about we take her in?"

 

Caitlin immediately tried to dissuade her of spending _any_ time with her daughter. "Oh no, I couldn't let you do that. Francis has another chapter to finish, and you have a client! I'm happy to take her in."

 

Seeing the way Isabelle buried herself harder into her mother's shoulder, there was no way Hiero was letting Caitlin anywhere near her. Bitten by her daughter, ignored in favour of the wife...not a good day to be Caitlin Hollister. Hiero grinned as she held her daughter as close as she could. "We'll see you at seven tonight, Caitlin."

 

The nanny left with a snarl, barely keeping her anger in check as she was dismissed. When they heard the front door go, Isabelle snuggled out from under her arm and pressed a kiss to her mother's chin. Hiero kissed the top of her head before helping her finish getting dressed. She did up her dungarees and helped put on her trainers with Velcro. When Francis waved them off at the door [with a squeeze of her ass, no less], Isabelle was beaming all over the place.

 

Sadly, it didn't last.

 

Their car journey into the city was quiet, Isabelle mostly spending her time looking out the window. She enjoyed staring at the city go by. When Hiero wasn't watching the road, she was watching her daughter. Her little cub. She was so perfect and Hiero would do anything to make her happy. The fact that she looked so downhearted as she stared out the window broke the assassin's heart.

 

After Hiero parked the car and they began their walk to school, Isabelle finally voiced what had been bothering her since they had left home.  "I don't like her."

 

The declaration was honest, but unsurprising. The little cub waited for her mother's response as they crossed the road. Her rabbit bounced at the top of her backpack as they walked. She didn't know what to say to her daughter, didn’t even know where to start. Honesty was perhaps the best policy.

"Honey, I'm not particularly fond of Caitlin myself."

 

Isabelle nodded, a smile coming back on her mouth. Hiero still remembered the few days that she had reassured Isabelle that Caitlin was lovely, and she would get used to her soon. The first squeeze of Francis' bicep changed all that. Isabelle tugged at her hand as they continued their conversation. "I don't like the way she looks at Daddy. Only you get to look at Daddy like that, because you're his mate."

 

Hiero giggled, making Isabelle laugh too. Referring to each other as mates and Isabelle as their cub had made them more pack than family. It suited them, though. They were nothing like the polished families of Isabelle's school, although Hiero was worried that with the nanny becoming an ever increasing presence that they were fast becoming the stereotype. Hopefully it wouldn't last forever. She and Francis were meant to be together.

 

As they got to the school gates, Hiero dropped down in front of her daughter and adjusted her collar and plaits. She looked absolutely beautiful. "You got your lunch?" A nod. "You got your...shoes?" A giggle and a nod. "You got Archie?" Isabelle peered around to check the rabbit in the back of her back pack before nodding again. Hiero pressed a kiss to her daughter's forehead. "Have a great day honey. I love you. And don't worry about Caitlin; we'll be getting rid of her soon."

 

The thought of getting rid of the nanny made her daughter beam, and Hiero had the privilege of watching her daughter run happily into school. Some of the parents noticed her and waved, but Hiero didn't intrude within the school gates. She would see all of them that evening anyway, and she had a client to prepare for. Looking at her watch, Hiero decided to grab a cup of something before heading to the hotel to seduce her hit. With a wave to her fellow parents she headed into the sun. She had a feeling today was going to be a good day.

 

X

 

Hiero really did love Los Angeles. It was bright and shiny and stock full of different people who were trying to start afresh just like she had been. Living out in the middle of nowhere meant that Isabelle would have access to the city and also experience the world that was lost amidst the skyscrapers. Hiero was so determined that her cub would get everything she hadn't.

 

Her upbringing had been...messy. Sure she had lived in a picket fence neighbourhood, but the fence had been rotten. Her brother had been scum, sniffing glue in his bedroom and jerking off to porn at three am. Hiero had tried not to hear, but the walls had been so thin. She preferred to hear that then her mother's sermons, though. She had always walked the line between sweet Christian girl and psychopath, often giving her neighbours blow jobs in church and pulling the wings off of moths. Burning down that picket fence had been the start of her new life.

 

She had thought that the fire had cleansed her, made her into a vengeful phoenix. But the years afterwards had made her believe that she was white trash, and she wasn't good for anything. Francis had changed all that, he had made her better. She couldn't lose him.

 

"Can I get you anything?"

 

Hiero was dragged out of memory lane by the sweet waitress perched eagerly over her notepad. She asked for a green tea and a chocolate chip cookie, needing something sweet. When the girl went away with her order, Hiero realised that she reminded her of Caitlin. Stick thin, breasts up to her chin, Nineteen year old skin. Little miss pom pom with her hands all over Hiero's husband needed to be dealt with, and quickly.

 

While waiting for her tea, Hiero went through her options. Sadly eating her was out of the question - now they had Isabelle and were socialising more as a family they couldn't kill anyone they knew. Drifters, hitch hikers and Hiero's hits were their only options. They couldn't even cure the meat at home any longer - it was impossible to do that with a five year old in the house. They had to rely on a friend Francis had made to do it for them. A necessary evil. During the nine months of Hiero's pregnancy they had enabled fail safes, false trails, a small countries worth of fake identities in case things started to unravel. Hiero just hoped that the one thing they hadn't planned for would be responsible for the end of their marriage.

 

Seconds after the waitress deposited the tea and cookie down on her table, Hiero felt rough lips attack her neck. Smelling her husband, Hiero let the kisses continue until he pulled away to sit on the seat next to her. There was a bouquet of lilies in his hand. She couldn't believe he was there. "Well this is a surprise."

 

"A good one I hope," Francis mumbled against her mouth, taking her lips for another soft kiss. They parted easily enough, his mouth drawing out a moan with the gentlest of pressure and the taste of blood on his lips. _His own_. God he knew just how to get her.

 

His hand reached out to take and squeeze hers. Hiero blushed as her husband gazed over her, admiring the blouse and earrings she was wearing. He looked quite dashing in his shirt and jacket, a hint of bare chest at the top. The way he was looking at her made her whimper. They had tried to make love once a week and fuck once a week and kiss every day, and all the books said it was natural for new parents to have difficulty being intimate with each other, especially if the nanny was a nineteen year old cheerleader. But the fact that he had sought her out...well that made her heart melt.   

 

She bit her lip as he ran a hand down her face, caressing her cheek. "I came to see if you wanted to finish what we started this morning," Francis grinned. His foot was moving up her thigh, rubbing against her stockings. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about you since you left. What you said about Caitlin being innocent...it reminded me how much I love that you're not." His foot moved against her thigh, his knee moving forward so she could grind against it if she wanted to. "I love how bad you are. I think we both need reminding..."

 

Francis moved closer to her, his hand slipping into her blonde curls. His other moved into her lap, stroking her pussy through her panties. Hiero knew she should stop him, knew she had an appointment to get to. But this was the closest they had been in two weeks. She couldn't deny this chance to be close to her husband, to feel him wanting her. Hiero bit back a sob as he pressed a kiss to the corner of her mouth.

 

They rested their foreheads together, trying to appear innocent. But under the table Hiero was being stroked and teased and tugged until she was soaked. Her husband's fingers were thrusting inside her, rubbing her clit and making every nerve ending twitch. She couldn't concentrate on anything other than his hand and the feel of his breath against her mouth. He played with her like a puppet, pulling her strings when someone came past, daring her to moan in the presence of another. She was on a knife edge, desperate to come, desperate to be alone with her husband for a good _week_ so they could tear each other's clothes off and fuck each other like animals.

 

"I can smell you, Hiero," Francis whispered in her ear, nibbling at the lobe. She trembled as his beard brushed against her jaw. "You smell so desperate, so intoxicating. You're so wet for me, Hiero. My little lamb, desperate to have the wolf inside of her."

 

He flicked his finger just too far and Hiero came, her teeth biting down so hard on her lip to stop herself from screaming her husband's name to the entire cafe. Francis stroked her neck, trying to cushion her as she came down from her orgasm. The pointed tip of his tongue licked at her lip, drawing her blood into his mouth.

 

With a smile, Francis pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I love you, Hiero."

 

"I love you too, Francis."

 

He wrapped his arms around her, holding her close in comfort. It had been too long since he had touched her, and now Hiero didn't ever want to let him go. When he pulled back, his wolf grin was dancing on his face. That grin usually led to Hiero handcuffed to a kitchen table while her husband pressed his mouth against every inch of her, or them playing American Soldier and Pioneer in the land out back. It was a _good_ grin. "There's an alley way not too far away." He pressed a kiss to her nose. "Can you smell it on me, Hiero? How much I need my wife?"

 

Hiero looked at her husband and stroked his face. She could see how desperate he was, how much he needed her. And she needed him too - she wanted to feel herself pressed up against him, wanted to feel his mouth on hers as he came inside her. But she had a client to get to, and if she missed her window then she didn't know when she would be able to grab her again. Women like that tended to run, and run quickly.

 

Groaning, Hiero slid away from her husband. She took his hand, though, and took both of his fingers inside her mouth. After a few seconds of sucking them clean, she let them drop to his side. She dropped ten bucks to the table and straightened her skirt. "I'm sorry, darlin', but I got to get to my client." She leaned in close and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "But if you're a good boy, you can have me all to yourself tonight."

 

With another quick kiss she left her husband sitting at the table, his cock hard as a rock. She had her appointment to get to; she couldn't be waylaid by a back alley blow job. As Hiero crossed the road, heels clacking against the tarmac, she hoped she hadn't pushed her husband to the nanny who would be more than happy to drop to her knees. 

 

X

 

Hiero reached the hotel with five minutes to spare and waited for the wannabe black widow to come by. She was a redhead with long legs pushed into a size too small dress, on the lookout for wife number four. When she caught sight of Hiero at the bar she forgot her previous plan and went to smile and flirt and buy the blonde a drink. This wasn't the first time that she had flirted with a woman, or indeed a man, for her job. Francis understood that, and thankfully had yet to throw her work flirtations back in her face. This was all business. She saw nothing about novel writing written on Caitlin's legs.

 

Suddenly the black widow was slipping her hand over Hiero's thigh, making it clear from the look in her eyes what she had in mind. It was always better that they made the first move. "Would you like to go upstairs?"

 

Bingo. And twenty minutes ahead of schedule too. "How about we go somewhere where we can be...loud?"

 

The fish took the bait and away they went. Killing someone in a hotel was tacky: it would invite too much suspicion; and video cameras and hotel records were dead giveaways to the police. If they left to go somewhere else then if, by some rare feat of chance, the police ever came to her she would be able to make up an alibi. This wasn't her first rodeo; Hiero knew how to play these marks.

 

They walked to the apartment building Hiero's alias lived at. Taxis would create witnesses, rental cars would create paperwork and using the hit's car was stupid. Who had time to dispose of a car? The apartment complex itself held six apartments but there was not a single occupant within it. She and Francis owned the building, allowing a fool proof space for which to hunt. Hiero now led the little widow to the elevator, making bedroom eyes all the way up to the third floor. She fumbled a little with the key in the lock as she let the widow in.

 

"Bedroom's to your left, I'll grab us some wine."

 

As the widow made herself comfortable on the machine washable sheets, Hiero took to the kitchen drawers to decide what she felt in the mood for. Pain, she was in the mood for pain. She was so tired of young women flaunting their bodies, thinking they could have anyone they wanted. They couldn't. Some men were married. Some men were in love. Yet still they flashed their breasts and their young flesh to taunt and tease and tempt. They couldn't have everything they wanted; they couldn't take it away from people who had wanted happiness their entire lives.

 

"Maggie? You coming?"

 

Hiero smiled. "In a minute!"

 

She had left her husband alone, desperate and wanting, so she could take care of this hit. Who knew when the next time would be? Opening the bottom kitchen drawer, Hiero found her scalpel and matches. Smiling to herself, imagining Caitlin straightening the beds, she began to walk to the bedroom at the back. She wouldn't be expecting it, she would be subdued quickly. A quick restraint with handcuffs and a gag perhaps and then Hiero could enjoy herself. Her husband was in the minority regarding knife play, and Hiero was sure that the widow would not be a fan. A few cuts here, a few burns there...the black widow wouldn't look so pretty after Hiero was through with her.

 

X

 

Despite how much she enjoyed playing plastic surgeon, cleaning up was a bitch. Hiero had to make sure all the blood was off of her skin lest she get caught out on a random violation. Francis was always worried she would get caught speeding with blood under her nails. He was so cute like that.

 

She would be with him soon enough, though. Hiero had just dropped the black widow down to Francis' friend and finished her errands for the day and it was now time to pick Isabelle up from school. It was rare that she got to do it; she always ended up letting Caitlin or occasionally Francis pick her up. She loved watching Isabelle come rushing out carrying a painting or a paper-mache mask, her face brightening when she saw that mommy had come to pick her up. The best thing she and Francis had ever done was her. She was perfect.

 

Walking along the street that would eventually lead her to Isabelle's school, she noticed something in the air. It smelt familiar, and it was fast approaching. Taking stock of the people around her, Hiero decided to take a little detour down an alley just as a figure pushed her against the wall. She thought about screaming, but when her husband's teeth started nipping at her throat, all she could do was moan. Screaming would come later.

 

"You smell like sex and blood," Francis muttered against her neck. "And chocolate. Did you go for cake after your client?"

 

Hiero giggled, pushing her arms around her husband's neck. He looked incredible, all rough and dark and sexy. Desperate suited him. She bit his lip. "I picked up a pastry on my way here. I needed something sweet."

 

She felt his cock press against her hip, could feel his rough fingers digging into her sides so hard she knew they would leave bruises. "Well I would have given you something sweet had you not ran out on me at the cafe. Can we continue our conversation now, or do I have to wait until we're at home to have you?"

 

Hiero rubbed her nose against his. It was so tempting to let him have her in the alley. At the start of their relationship they had done it everywhere - alley ways, national parks, police station bathrooms, even a church. But screaming through the lust filled haze was the image of Isabelle rushing out from school and seeing both her parents waiting for her. "We have a five year old to pick up."

 

Francis sighed as he released her a little, pressing a kiss to her nose. "That we do. Come on then, let's go pick up our cub."

 

 He still kept her close as they walked to the school, his arm stroking her bare skin under her blouse. She loved it when they were like this, when they couldn't keep their hands off each other. Along the street Hiero slipped her hand into Francis' back pocket, squeezing his ass. She nuzzled his neck, not wanting to move away from him. They looked like any other couple in love.

 

"Got your costume for the party yet?" Francis asked as they continued to walk. Hiero swung her bag in answer. Despite the fact that she would be surrounded by simpering parents from school, Hiero was determined to have a good time at the costume party that night. As much as she loved her little cub, she missed spending time with her husband. He pressed a kiss to her neck and moved to grab the bag but Hiero ducked out the way. "What, am I not allowed to see it?"

 

"You'll see me in it later!"

 

They laughed as they continued on their way, Francis making a grab for the bag twice but Hiero spinning just out of reach both times. Just as they turned the corner onto Isabelle's school's street, a woman walked past them. Brown hair, low cut top, shorts at mid thigh. She looked a little older than Caitlin, but everything was still in the right place. Francis was still holding her hand as he turned his head to give the woman an appreciative glance over. He cocked a predatory grin before turning back to face the pavement.

 

Once they were out of earshot of the woman, Hiero yanked her hand out of his. She hadn't wanted to make a scene, but now she couldn't bear holding his hand. How could he still act so romantic with her when he had just done that? To her chagrin, Francis looked confused, as if unsure of what had just happened. "Hiero?"

 

"Did you think I couldn’t see you looking at her?"

 

Her husband, the manipulator of pretty words, was stumped. She walked past him, hoping by the time he caught up with her he would know what to say. Sure enough, his hand yanked her to him, both of his hands then resting against her face. A gentle touch, a loving touch. Too much. "Hiero, I thought we had reached an understanding. There's no one I want more than you!"

 

She tangled her fingers in his before dragging them down and away from her face. She didn't want him touching her right now. "Then why did you stare at her?"

 

Francis shook his head, sighing as if about to chastise a ridiculous child. "Hiero, I'm a man. Hell, I'm a Wendigo. We stare at other women. It doesn't mean anything; it just means we're...enjoying the world." He grinned, trying to play this off as some sort of cocky joke. His smile made her feel three inches tall. "Come on, Hiero, are you telling me that you have _never_ stared at another man while we've been together? In all these years?"

 

Trying to ignore the tears that were threatening to break, she shook her head. "No, I haven't Francis. I have everything that I need with you. I don't look at any other men because I don't need to. But you obviously do."

 

He reached up to hold her again, the situation well past funny. "Hiero, I love you. How can you think that I'd ever look at another woman and want to trade you in?"

 

She smacked him on the chest when he tried to hold her, pushing him further and further away. He still wasn't getting it. "Every other man that I've been with has been looking for something better. Every other man has seen me as a stepping stone to someone prettier, someone smarter, someone more respectable. When you stare at other women or when you flirt with Caitlin in our damn kitchen it makes me wonder if I'm just a stepping stone to something better."

 

Francis opened his mouth to argue with her but she didn't want to hear it. She just walked off in the direction of Isabelle's school as fast as her heels would carry her. She had spent all her life searching for a man who loved her and now that she had him she was afraid of losing him. She knew he loved her, knew that he loved the life they had created. But every single time he looked at someone else it hurt her and she wondered. She wondered when the day would come that he would take Isabelle and leave her to rot.

 

She couldn't lose him. She would die first. 

**Author's Note:**

> Part two will be coming soon!


End file.
